Southwestern Archaeology, Inc. (SWA)
Southwestern Archaeology Special Interest Group (SASIG)
"Got CALICHE?" Newsletter, Addendum
Archaeology, Anthropology, and History of the Greater Southwest!
Sunday October 22, 2000
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I DREAMED I SAW JOE HILL LAST NIGHT, ALIVE AS YOU OR I...
[Editor's Note: Joe Hill, the rebel poet, was executed in the early morning of November 19, 1915 in Salt Lake City UT ]
>>From Michele Wilson (via Shovelbums List): "Tales from the Trenches: The People, Policies, and Procedures of Cultural Resource Management" suggests that CRM employees today see a separation between industry managers and industry laborers that has made it increasingly difficult to contribute to our understanding of the past... low industry wages, deficient safety policies and procedures, out-dated academic curricula, and a lack of dialogue between managers and field technicians.
[Editor's Reply: Without having had opportunity to read this thesis, it sounds well-grounded in Marxist ideology and theory (e.g., issues of class struggle). Several CRM managers independently tell me they can hire all the people they need to "do archaeology" at the crew level. They say the bottlenecks they face occur because it is much harder to find properly credentialed persons with ability to design and direct/manage projects, understand and use technology, and write well... all in a timely and business-like fashion. They aren't looking at issues of class struggle. They are seeking research and managerial competence and best of class business behaviors that can be rewarded in the free market.]
From: Deb Dosh I am responding to the article and the Editor's response posted in the 'Got Caliche ?' newsletter of 10/21/00: Brian, you responded accurately, but left a few things out. I have tapped into this Shovelbum web site, but found nothing of interest. What I found a little interesting was that someone in my office was getting e-mail from these people, who ever they are. I sent them a message asking that they send me some information on what the represent and who they are, but never received a response from them. So much for the lack of dialogue. Two of the things I find interesting in this thesis are the use of the term "archaeological technician," and that this person blames the university curriculum on CRM managers. I strongly object to using the term technician in reference to people who have four-year degrees from a university. If the government is now using that terminology, and these people are being treated as technicians (see the language used in any Federal service contract) it is because in their quest to receive better pay, they have created a union of archaeological technicians and forced the Labor Department to comply with their pay scale wishes, regardless of region. It is also not the fault of CRM managers that these people are not receiving the training they need to get better jobs in CRM companies. All the SAA Task Force on Curriculum does is try to get proper training for archaeologists so they can hope to receive the better paying jobs in the CRM field. There is a lot of resistance from university programs to change their curriculum to assist these people. It certainly cannot be blamed on CRM managers. We have been telling universities for years that their programs need to be upgraded to accommodate all of the graduates who are planning to go into CRM related jobs after graduation. They could easily accommodate these people with courses designed to 1) understand state and federal laws governing archaeology and preservation, 2) to organize and manage contracts of all types and sizes or to manage resources in agency contexts, 3) teach rudimentary analytical skills which can then be combined with the required courses in theory and behavior, and 4) to write technical reports. I think that Southwestern universities in particular are in a good position to begin programs like these, but almost every student I have spoken to in the last few years has told me that they were discouraged to go into the CRM field by most of their professors. So, my message to the Shovelbums is that if they want changes they need to get out there and make some. Tell universities what you want to see in terms of curriculum, practical and theoretical training, and that you want to be treated as professionals, not technicians! I personally don't even use the term technician in any hiring situation. You are either hired as a professional archaeologist or researcher at Kinlani, or you are hired as a laborer. I won't hire someone without a degree as an archaeologist. We need the same standards as any other profession. Lawyers are not lawyers until after they finish their degrees and pass the Bar, and engineers are not engineers until they finish college and pass a test. I do not believe in creating a whole class of skilled laborers, called archaeological technicians, whose only purpose is to provide labor for people with Ph.D. level eductions. As it stands right now, people with Masters in Anthropology can be classified as a technician. I never considered myself a technician. Did you? Deb Dosh.
Editor's Reply -- As well, there is the issue of personl responsibility to plan a career, and the issue of life-long learning in the information age. I hear from a few students who want to be professional anthropologists and archaeologists. They write me because they find the SWA web page and think that I might be accessible, especially as they may not be receiving the answers they need from their professors. Students get to discuss the issues with me, and we often wind up exhanging private series of e-mail questions and answers. One of the biggest issues I raise is building a professional and personalized "suite of important technologies and competencies," and continuously updating it. However, I hear from only a few students each month. Many students may be getting their good questions answered well elsewhere, but I also suspect that many students have not even thought about it, and for them, a 'crunch' comes down the road, and a river of disappointment runs through them. Truth may be stranger than fiction, but there may be a lot of truth in the moniker 'shovel bum.' Personally, I would not disparage the tool because... its really not the shovel's fault.
PLANNING A CAREER
[Editor's Note: Here are two articles that clearly identify some of the skill sets needed today in the archaeological profession -- communication skills, leadership skills, problem-solving abilities, and collaborative skills while working; fight the demons of bureaucracy; keeping obstacles out of colleagues way...]
http://news.excite.com/news/pr/001018/md-scientists-young Young scientists will compete in student teams at two Smithsonian Institution museums, the National Museum of Natural History (NMNH) and the National Museum of American History (NMAH). The students will work in the same public and private laboratories, and use the same equipment, as Smithsonian scientists. Finalists will also participate in two "communication challenges." and will be judged on their individual written and visual communication skills, leadership skills, problem-solving abilities, and collaborative skills while working on these challenges.
http://www2.startribune.com/stOnLine/cgi-bin/article?thisStory=82761712 Dream job: Archaeologist. I have always had a fantasy to be like Howard Carter, who discovered King Tutankhamen's tomb. I am fascinated with the idea of being in a place that no one has been in for thousands of years. Of course, I'd prefer to discover a tomb that doesn't have a curse on it! Top priority for your new job: Fight the demon of bureaucracy. My number one priority is to keep obstacles out of my colleagues way.
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Southwestern Archaeology, Inc. (SWA) - A 501(c)(3) not-for-profit corporation dedicated to electronic potlatch and digital totemic increase rites that focus and multiply historic preservation activities in the Greater Southwest. Our goal is to create and promote an environment in which archaeologists can develop their talents and take the risks from which innovation and productivity arise.
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